Mystery Hair/Skin Condition (Warning Photo's Included)

Hi, I'm new to the forum and am looking for advice on my bun's strange hair/condition.

Today my rabbit Bambi has had her stitches out for an abcess she had removed from her body a week last friday. When she was shaved for the operation the vet found some strange markings/areas on her body. Initially he thought this might be syphilis but they found it very odd that the markings were on her body rather than her genital region or face. Also the markings aren't crusty. The vet nurse said that in 13 years of dealing with rabbits she hasn't seen anything like it! The vet and vet nurse are flumoxed by it. They have suggested it could be a birth defect and that the hair might be growing in the wrong direction.

To me though the random patches of hair just look like areas that they haven't shaved off but the vet said that this isn't the case and it isn't normal. The photo's below are on Bambi's body and are of the same area taken from different angles. The pinkish markings are where she has had her stitches out. It is the random patches of hair within the shaved area that I am trying to figure out. Also these patches of hair have grown amazingly fast since she was first shaved. Anyone any idea? Thanks

Erm ok , i don't understand whats wrong with that , i don't know where your vet got the idea of syphillis from , thats sore patches and white spots on the genital area . It looks fine to me , nothing wrong at all , its just the way she is :wave:

When rabbits moult their fur goes patchy when it's quite fluffy and soft which is what yours looks like- my doe looks a right mess at the moment, she has short bits and long bits and tufts of the old fur that are coming out- I'd imagine she'd look the same as your bun if she'd been shaved

Was she having antibiotic injections before her operation ?

Sorry, I'm a bit confused about what areas are concerning you.

So, she was shaved over that entire area and some patches have grown in quickly? I imagine it's just depending on her moult. Unlike humans, rabbit's hair doesn't grow continually so after being shaved they can stay bald for quite a while until after they next moult. Rabbits can moult in splodges and odd wavy patterns, one of mines doing it at the moment and has splodgy patches of missing fur.

As for the skin colour, it's probably where the new fur is coming in. If you look at the fur around the sides you can see the fur is different colour along the length, pale near the skin and dark at the tip. As the dark tip comes through the skin it makes dark patterns, these disappear as the fur grows through

Tam

it looks like stitching to me...am i bieng stupid?

When Lionel was shaved to have an op his hair grew back like that he still has some random bald patches now! I think its 'normal'

When my rex Snowy had an op, his hair grew back in clumps like that. It took about 3-4 months til the rest of his hair started growing back!

Jessica was spayed 6-8 months ago and her tummy still is bald in places, nothing to worrie about, if anything its a little cooler for them in the heat

I don't really understand what is wrong with it either to be honest. The vet seems to think something is. Like I said, to me it just looks like hair they haven't shaved off. I said that to the vet and she said that it isn't the case and it isn't normal. The hair in these areas was much much shorter after they had shaved her and has grown extremely quick. I asked if it is anything to do with the way she is moulting but the vet said no.

Perhaps I should change my vet? Thanks for the responses. I feel better now that no one else thinks there is anything wrong either

Jack's-Jane said:

Was she having antibiotic injections before her operation ?

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Yep she had one antibiotic injection 2 days before she was shaved for the operation.

Tamsin said:

Sorry, I'm a bit confused about what areas are concerning you.

So, she was shaved over that entire area and some patches have grown in quickly? I imagine it's just depending on her moult. Unlike humans, rabbit's hair doesn't grow continually so after being shaved they can stay bald for quite a while until after they next moult. Rabbits can moult in splodges and odd wavy patterns, one of mines doing it at the moment and has splodgy patches of missing fur.

As for the skin colour, it's probably where the new fur is coming in. If you look at the fur around the sides you can see the fur is different colour along the length, pale near the skin and dark at the tip. As the dark tip comes through the skin it makes dark patterns, these disappear as the fur grows through

Tam

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I'm confused as to why the patches of hair are concerning the vet. If the vet wasn't concerned I wouldn't have thought there was anything wrong with it. I'm getting the feeling the vet has had me worrying over nothing. Perhaps they haven't shaved a rabbit that's been moulting before? :? The day they shaved her it just looked like patches of hair they missed to me and since then they have grown very quick. The vets have had me very confused.

racheljessica said:

Yep she had one antibiotic injection 2 days before she was shaved for the operation.

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Then I would say that she has had a local reaction to the injection. Very common, especially if the abx was Baytril. From the photo the area affected is about where an injection would be given ( the scruff). It should heal up fine and the fur will regrow

I agree with everyone else, there doesn't seem to be any problem (unless the fur is hiding it :? )

I've actually had a locum vet tell me off before for letting my short-haired dwarf lop get matted...she wasn't matted at all, just having a normal patchy moult which lops often have :shock: :roll: